The chamber is packed Wednesday at the RSA Union Building in downtown Montgomery for the Public Service Commission's public meeting on utility rates charged by Alabama Power Co.

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Alabama Power Co. defended its rate structure and spoke out against "misleading" information about its profits Wednesday during a daylong public meeting that could shape the company's future and affect its customers rates.

A series of company experts and consultants detailed its financial picture to the Public Service Commission inside a room filled with officials, consumer advocates and members of the public. They described a utility that's been inaccurately portrayed as too costly because of a lack of understanding about how its finances work.